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3 Things #SelectionSunday Can Teach You About Estate Planning

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Selection Sunday 2017

1. If you understand #SelectionSunday, and #MarchMadness, you can most certainly understand estate planning.

When I meet people who say they’re confused about estate planning I love to see their faces when I tell them understanding the basics of wills, trusts, and even business succession planning may sound intimidating, but the basics are as simple as understanding NCAA March Madness. Seriously! Many folks know what teams are on the bubble, which teams were playing well at end of the season and which weren’t, what the most likely upsets are, and so on.NCAA Basketballs

Just like all those details are a part of #SelectionSunday and #NCAAMarchMadness, there are multiple inputs that go into a quality estate plan. For starters, there are your personal goals, the six main estate planning documents, and then personal considerations for, say, children, a family with special needs, pets, and charitable bequests. Feel free to read into these estate plan elements (like you would check out the stats of your favorite teams!) in between sweating out your bracket. And, speaking of your bracket…

2. If you have time to fill out a March Madness bracket (and you do), you also have time to fill out an Estate Plan Questionnaire.

Most everyone I know fills out a March Madness bracket in a (mostly) friendly competition with family, friends, co-workers, or sometimes all three. If you have time to fill out a bracket, why not also put serious thought into securing your future with estate planning? No, I’m not trying to guilt you. It’s just, again, it’s not that hard! You can find my Estate Plan Questionnaire here. It’s a great place to start.

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 3. Weird stuff happens.

We all know that a huge part of the fun of NCAA March Madness is the upsets. The super thrilling and/or gut-wrenching endings that shouldn’t have happened, but somehow did. It’s a reminder that life, for better or worse, is quite unpredictable. Why not make sure that plans are in place in case something unexpected happens?

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Want some more sports to legal analogies in your life? Check out this read on preparing your favorite nonprofit for top-notch compliance.

Regardless of who you’re slating to win it all, I would love to hear from you; let’s schedule an initial free one-hour consultation (at no obligation, of course). Email me at gordon@gordonfischerlawfirm.com or give me a call at 515-371-6077.

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Is Your Favorite (Nonprofit) Team on the Bubble?

#SelectionSunday

As we basketball fans get ready for #SelectionSunday, is your team on the bubble? Lots of reporting (like here and here and here) features teams that are oh-so-close to being in the NCAA Tournament, but perhaps not quite so.

Which reminds me to ask, how is your nonprofit team doing? In terms of compliance, is your favorite nonprofit safely “in” the compliance zone and ready to play to win, or are you hoping that the team can be just compliant enough to slide in?

Who do YOU cheer for?

person shooting on basketball court

When I say favorite nonprofit, think of it like the team you have slated to go all the way and win the final round! Perhaps your fave nonprofit is arts-oriented, like Revival Theatre Company in Cedar Rapids. Maybe your top pick is a local human services organization, like The Crisis Center in Johnson County. You could cheer the most for an animal welfare organization, like Friends of the Animal Center Foundation in Iowa City. You may be a tried and true support for a nonprofit that works for the benefit of developing countries, like Self-Help International based in Waverly, Iowa.

In any case, the nonprofit topping your list will likely need to submit an annual filing with the IRS to be “in” the compliance zone. The majority of nonprofit organizations must file some version of IRS Form 990, which asks about a number of policies and procedures.

Go for the win!

Just like the game of basketball is played within an established set of rules, tax-exempt organizations must also “play” within specific guidelines. Doing so means having specific policies and procedures in place to be compliant and in order to meet the IRS’ expectations. When a nonprofit invests in comprehensive internal and external policies and procedures it’s like investing in the right training and resources to maximize the sport team’s strengths.

To continue the analogy, consider me the coach for these policies and procedures and I want to help all Iowa nonprofits teams play their best. This is why I’m offering the 10 for 990 nonprofit policy special now through March 15. Leave the legal drafting to someone else while you continue to maximize your mission. Note that the $990 rate for the 10 important policies asked about on Form 990 also includes a comprehensive consultation and one full review round.

Help your team!

If you’re a nonprofit founder, executive, board member, or even an active volunteer, this is an excellent way to ensure the organization you’re deeply invested in is meeting (and exceeding!) the standard for tax-exempt organizations.

The 10 policies a part of this promotion will save your tax-exempt organization time, resources, and you can feel good about having a set of high quality policies to guide internal operations, present to the public (if appropriate), and fulfill Form 990 requirements.

Don’t wait for a last second shot!

As the game changes your team needs to adapt. If you already have some (or all) of the policies your team needs in place, seriously consider the last time they were updated. How has the organization changed since they were written? Have changes to state and federal laws impacted these policies at all? It may be high time for a new set of policies that fits your organization.

After you’re done filling out your March Madness bracket, commit to helping your own nonprofit team be a champion. Contact GFLF before the policy promotion is up (March 15) via email (Gordon@gordonfischerlawfirm.com) or by phone (515-371-6077) to get started.

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